Cat Burglar or Dupe? Chinese Tourist Swallows Diamond at Gem Expo

Katrina Brown Hunt

September 18, 2012

Say what you want about the colorful geeks who go to ComiCon every year, but give them credit: You never hear about them trying to swallow light sabers on the sly.

That wasn't the case at Facets 2012, the latest of the famed Sri Lankan gem expo. Earlier this month, police arrested a seemingly jewel-loving Chinese tourist at the exhibition after he was suspected of swallowing a $13,000 diamond and replacing it in the display case with a fake gem.

What happens after you swallow a 1.5 carat diamond, you might ask? If you are the 32-year-old Chou Wan, you are given an x-ray, and then a laxative, by the authorities. Once the gem had been liberated, however, there was a wacky turn of events worthy of the "uh-oh" music heard on game shows: It turns out that the swallowed diamond was itself a fake.

Police are now looking for Chou's companion from the gem expo, who is suspected of having stolen the real gem. Chou, one could speculate, might stick with gourmet food fairs after this.